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CHAPTER START---
Oberon walked down the hallway already dressed, wearing thick long pants, his boots, and a set of winter clothes, or for this village, everyday clothes.
It was barely sunrise as he stepped into the living room to see his dad checking on the fireplace.
The man was wearing similar snow gear, but beside him was an axe leaning against the wall.
"Morning, dad," Oberon says, rubbing his eyes as he yawns, struggling to stay awake.
"See what happens when you spend all night reading? Now you're all sleepy. Just be glad this isn't a school day," his dad says as he stands up and slings the axe over his shoulder. "This winter is being extra harsh, so let's go restock the firewood before it gets any worse, alright?"
"Yeah, sure." Oberon yawns again as he follows his dad outside.
As they exit the house, Oberon sees the entire village below them.
Although small, their house, positioned at the top, oversaw the entire thing.
This entire village was atop a large mountain plateau, as if a sword slashed the entire top off.
There were a few dozen houses and even an inn, a single set of train tracks running beside it.
But the trains that came here weren't passenger trains like other train tracks got. They were for the almost exclusive purpose of shipping the iron mined from the mountain away from the village.
Across the village was a mineshaft tunneling down into this very mountain, reinforced by magic to prevent a collapse so the workers can freely carve away and extract the resources from within.
Taking a deep breath of the frigid mountain air, they both appreciate the sight of the rising sun before Oberon follows his dad down the mountain a bit.
Lacrima -magic-storing crystals- powered most of the houses here. People used Lacrima crystals in devices to heat homes, create water in pipes, and provide various other daily necessities.
But Oberon's dad preferred to keep Lacrima as a secondary resource rather than using it first during the winter.
Winter weather can block or collapse the train tracks leading here, delaying supplies to the village for a considerable time.
This is especially bad since it's more likely to happen during the harshest part of winter, the time where going out to get firewood isn't an option anymore.
Walking down the mountain and into the more forested area, Oberon sees his dad raise his hands and create a Light Sphere to illuminate their path, and he does the same.
Feeling the cold bite, Oberon tries to distract himself from it.
"The book you got me. There was only one new thing in it," Oberon says.
"Oh, was it something useful?"
"Not sure yet, kinda, maybe, I dunno," he says.
"Well, if anyone here can figure it out, it'll be you," his dad says. "Are you already done with the others?"
"Mhm, can I get one on Gravity Magic next?"
His dad stops and looks around for a bit, searching for the right tree, "sorry buddy but those books are a bit more expensive, and since I'm stationed out here, I don't have the usual access someone of my rank would get."
"Oh," Oberon was clearly disappointed, and his dad could tell as he walked toward another patch of trees, leading his son.
"But I'll call my superior in the capital, alright, I'll see what I can do," he looks back and sees his son smiling and nodding along.
And for a moment, Oberon's Light Sphere becomes blindingly bright before going back to normal.
"Thanks dad!"
"Don't worry about it, I mean it's probably my fault you've got that magic instead of just my Light Magic anyway, guess my genes have too much magical talent huh," his dad enjoys a deep laugh as he looks around for the right tree.
"Then how come your magic is so weak?"
"Ach," his dad chokes on nothing. "I'm not weak. I'm a Rune Knight for crying out loud. You're just weirdly strong. It's not normal."
"Yeah, that's what everyone says," Oberon says sadly as he looks down at the snow covered ground.
His dad stops and turns around, seeing his son moping about, "Is that why you keep asking about quitting school? Do the other kids make fun of you?"
"No," he lied, terribly.
"Oberon, do the other kids make fun of you?"
Oberon sighs and looks up at his concerned father. "It's not like they make fun of me... They're scared of me. They won't even let me play with them. None of them have magic and they treat me like I'm some kind of monster for it. They think I'll cheat so they don't want me to play with them, and they're scared to talk to me because they think I'll hurt them... staying home and reading would be just as good. Plus, mom can teach me. She does all the paperwork for the mine so she's smart enough. I don't need school. I can already read and write and count and stuff. Not much else to learn, right?"
His dad sighs and rests a hand on his head, ruffling his hair.
"You know, when I became a Rune Knight, they did it because I had magic, and I was already born here. Sending someone to give me basic training and then stationing me here was just the easy choice. But nobody else in our little village had magic, so naturally people were jealous. They said I'd just gotten lucky, and they were right. But eventually, despite how they felt, we became friends. And now we're all nice to each other."
"So when I grow up they'll be nice to me?"
"Well, I was saying that sometimes people just need time to adjust, especially in a village where you and I are the only wizards. If we lived somewhere like Crocus, nobody would even care that we have Magic," his dad laughed at the idea.
"Did you ever want to leave?" Oberon asks.
"Oh yeah, all the time," his dad says as they once again begin looking around. "But then I realized if I leave, there wouldn't be anyone here to defend these people if something bad happened, plus your mom was here, so I had good reason to stay."
"What if I want to leave?" Oberon asks.
"Well, I hope you mean in a few years. At least wait till you're 16, alright?"
"Yeah."
"Promise?"
Oberon sighs, "I won't leave until I'm 16."
"Good, but honestly, I think I'd prefer it if you left. I don't want either of my kids to be like me and your mom, only ever knowing this little village. It's a peaceful life, but there is more to life than this, plus you've got some magic that I know you want to learn more about."
"Yeah!" Oberon excitedly yells out, and his Light Sphere become blindingly bright for a moment once more. "I'll go join a guild and find a strong teacher!"
His dad chuckles at that, "exactly what I would have done, which guild did you have in mind?"
"Uhh...I don't really know any."
"Gifted with Magic, not with forethought," his dad chuckles. "That's what happens when you dream big at 8 years old."
"Which guild would you have joined?"
"Hmm," his dad thinks about it for a moment. "Well, I have Light Magic, so I probably would have gone to Magnolia and Joined Fairy Tail."
"Fairy Tail?" Oberon asks. "I've never heard of them."
"That's because they aren't a top guild. If you only cared about that, then Phantom Lord would be the obvious choice."
"That's a cool name. 'Fairy Tail' sounds kind of lame."
"Just don't say that to them. Those wizards are a rowdy bunch," his dad says.
"But if they aren't a top guild, then why would you join them?"
"Well, that's quite simple, really. His name is Makarov Dreyar."
"Who?"
"The guild master of Fairy Tail," his dad says. "He's one of the Ten Wizard Saints, the strongest mages in Ishgar. There are only two in Ishgar, and since Fiore is the strongest country in Ishgar, that makes him one of the strongest wizards in the Eastern Continent, a whole quarter of the world."
"Woooo," he looks back to see Oberon's eyes wide at that, his view of the world expanding bit by bit. "He sounds awesome. Is he really a saint? Did they come from heaven?"
His dad chuckles at that, "it's only a title, son. They protect Fiore and Ishgar as if they were saints, so it fits, right?"
"So they aren't from heaven." Oberon was genuinely disappointed.
"No, but I guess in a way he's the closest," his dad says. "He uses Light Magic, which is closest to Holy Magic, and he's the greatest Light Magic user in the world, maybe of all time."
"So he could teach us cool spells!" Once again, Oberon's Light Sphere shines brightly before dimming.
"Tons of cool spells, plus I hear he's super nice, too."
"We should go see him!"
"Settle down now, I can't just abandon the village, but your birthday is in a few months so how about I organize a little trip, maybe I can convince one of my buddies to monitor this place for a week and the four of us can visit Magnolia."
"Yes yes yes yes!" Oberon's Light Sphere illuminates the forest with genuinely blinding light.
"Oberon!"
"Sorry!" he cuts off his spell. "I got excited."
"Its fine, once it isn't the Gravity Magic, again..." his dad says.
'I'll have to promise some serious favors to get someone to cover my shift for a week in this place,' his dad thinks, but then he looks back at his son, who was excitedly walking behind him. 'Well, a family trip will be nice, and now both the kids are big enough to travel to the other side of Fiore.'
"Alright, this one looks good," his dad says as they see a tree that 'just right' for firewood, even if Oberon could never understand what that meant.
He assumed it was just an old person thing.
"Ready?" his dad asks.
"Ready," Oberon raises a hand and gesture to the tree, in a grabbing motion, and a Magic Circle swirls in front of his hand.
It appeared like a picture of the cosmos, void black with shimmering stars, swirling about as all Magic Circles do, but appearing as if it were a galaxy.
Then it disappears.
Stepping forward, his dad lifts the axe and takes a low, striking stance.
Then his dad begins his chant.
"Flow through me and bless me with your strength, Regulus!"
A magic circle appears beneath his feet, glowing bright gold and swirling around, then both his hands emit light before it spreads to the axe.
With one swing, his dad chops down the tree, clearing through 2ft -60cm- of tough bark with ease.
The 30ft -10m- tree, even without being connected to its base, doesn't fall.
The man deactivates his magic, and the light of Regulus disappears.
His dad slings the axe over his shoulder once more and simply walks up to the tree, grabbing it and shaking it so any critters run out.
After a few seconds, he walks off while dragging it behind them, as if holding a helium balloon.
"You know, I really wish we made you sooner," his dad says.
"You say that every time we do this," Oberon reminds him.
"Yeah well, you being able to make a tree weightless is very helpful. Over the years, that's a lot less hours ankle deep in this snow."
"You should have just learned Gravity Magic."
His dad sighs, "life really isn't that simple kid. Anyway, let's just get to the house. Your mom has to get to work, and I need to collect the village supply shipment that's coming in today."
"That's today!" Oberon's Light Sphere shines brightly, but this time he focuses and reverts it quickly.
"Yes, and yes, they will bring in some chocolate."
"Mmm, chocolate."
"Say, which do you like more, chocolate, or magic?" his dad asks.
"Magic," he instantly answers.
"Really? I've seen your grandma let you eat so much chocolate you throw up."
"Yeah, but Magic lets me fly," Oberon says.
"Uh, you can't fly."
"Not yet, but I will."
"Guess it makes sense with your type of Magic," his dad thinks about it for a moment and can't help but smile. "Hey son, can you promise me something?"
"Huh? What is it?"
"Promise me you'll never stop dreaming big, that you'll never settle and get stuck in a place like this, like me, alright?"
"Uh, sure, but why?"
"Just because, it's a big world out there, be a shame if you only flew around our little village..."
END CHAPTER---
Discord: discord .gg /eHuxNeZfyS [Come chat with me]
pat.reon: Keanu_Eugene [Read ahead & support me]
You.tube: @KeanuEugene [Giving away all my writing knowledge]